With the continued growth of the University of Tennessee and the growing importance of public safety needs, UT Police Chief Troy Lane will transition solely to the Associate Vice Chancellor of Public Safety.

Lane, who was named police chief in 2012, and then assumed the dual role of AVC and Chief in 2016.

Since assuming both roles, all areas of public safety, which include University of Tennessee Police Department, Environmental Health and Safety, Office of Emergency Management, Clery Compliance, as well as the needs of Physical Security and Access Control have continued to grow. Not just the need for their services, but also in staff size.

With Lane leading the way, UTPD has grown from roughly 50 officers to 75 full-time sworn officers, and Environmental Health and Safety has grown from roughly a dozen employees to more than 40.

“One of my goals was to help elevate and grow the department, as well as moving the needle on professionalism,” said AVC Troy Lane. “I have not only been fortunate enough to do those things, but also double the starting salary of officers, which keeps us competitive in hiring top quality officers.”

While in his role as chief, Lane has also led the department through four Commission on Accreditation of Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) re-accreditations, along with four International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators (IACLEA), as well as two additional state accreditations.

Lane also receives credit for numerous actions he has taken through UTPD, some of which include having more than half his staff trained in Critical Incident response Teams (CIT), as well as starting a Veterans CIT Program, starting an explosive detection canine program, providing police department participation with the FBI Cybercrimes Task Force, drug/apprehension canine program, having three members of his department attend the FBI National Academy. He has accomplished all these and more, while also helping the International Association of Chiefs of Police Office of Violence Against Women develop training and national guidelines for response to sexual assaults.

“Lane has been the driving force behind so many initiatives that have helped shape and grow every division of public safety,” said Senior Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration, Allen Bolton. “This transition will allow him to step away from the day-to-day operations of running the police department and allow him to focus on the overall bigger picture of public safety.”

During his transition, Lane will also oversee the hiring of a new Director of Physical Security, who will be responsible for heading up the specifics with physical security and access control across campus.

“The Director of Physical Security has an important role when it comes to safety across campus,” said Lane. “That role will work directly with Central Alarm, which equates to our access, door functions and the automatic locking ability across campus.”

“During his dual role here at UT, Lane has been recognized nationally for his sports safety and security knowledge, as well as being named as a Region Director/Chief of the Year by IACLEA,” said Bolton. “His attention to detail, knowledge and professionalism make him an asset to our university and having him to focus strictly on public safety overall is a win for all of us.”

In all areas of public safety, Lane strives to push employees to continue their education, not just for development, but for creating a more well-rounded working environment.

During his time with UT-Knoxville, multiple employees in each field of public safety have achieved some form of higher education, from earning their college degree, to masters, as well as even a PhD.

“Continuing higher education is one thing that I push in all of our departments,” said Lane. “The more you learn, and the more you grow your skill set, the more valuable you become, and the more you bring to the bigger picture of making our university excel even more.”

As for the police department, Lane will swear in Asst. Chief Sean Patterson, to assume the role of Chief on November 1, 2023.

Follow this link to read more about incoming Chief Sean Patterson.